


The Deception

by CasualPeruser



Series: The Legend of Rigel [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Inspired by The Rigel Black Chronicles, Rigel Black Exchange
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:34:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27430561
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CasualPeruser/pseuds/CasualPeruser
Summary: Earth. Fire. Air. Water.  For thousands of years, benders used to live apart, divided.  The avatar, master of all four elements continuously reincarnated and policed the world, making sure the world never became united. Sixty years ago, the fire nation defeated the avatar and united the four kingdoms.  Today, the entire world is finally united under the phoenix king, with the exception of the two fire nation territories- ba sing se and the northern water tribe.  All bending fire nation citizens by the order of the phoenix king, must go to Hogwarts and learn to master their element.  It has been forty years since someone was caught breaking this rule.
Series: The Legend of Rigel [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2004055
Comments: 9
Kudos: 22
Collections: Rigel Black Exchange Round 2





	The Deception

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Tsume_Yuki](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tsume_Yuki/gifts).



> Inspired by murkybluematter's fic. You do not need to read for this story to make sense.

“I won’t go, you can’t make me!” Her best friend’s voice was rarely raised, and never to his father. Harry remained leaning against the stone wall. Harry could not discern the voice of Sirius, for once, the more reasonable participant in a conversation. “I don’t want to become a fire nation general! I want to heal!” Harry winces at the volume.  
“You don’t have a choice. I don’t have a choice. The best healing school you can go to is Hogwarts. Trust me-it’s for the best.” They have gotten closer to the door now. Harry casually gives the door a wide berth and leans against the wall on the hinged side of the door.  
“I don’t care.” Archie is only slightly calmer “Screw the rules.”  
“Archie” Harry has never heard Sirius so serious before. “It is not just your life you would be jeopardizing by going to the Water Tribe healing school. You are denouncing your honor, and your loyalty to the fire nation. The fire nation has no patience for benders who flirt with other nations. Take the next nine months to accept Hogwarts. It’s a good school.”  
There is a pause; the door swings open wildly, and Harry sidesteps just before it slams into the stone wall. The door bounces back to close and Harry falls in step behind Archie. “So I take it operation “become a healer” is on permanent hiatus?”  
Archie sighs, “Is it too much to ask to be a bender in a foreign land? You could go to the Northern Water Tribe, no problem. But just because I’m a bender they don’t want me to be corrupted by the “evil savages”. How else am I supposed to learn? From hogwarts?! Hah! I’ll have to wait five years before I can begin learning, and in that time who knows how much I will change.”

Something in what Archie said tickled at Harry’s brain. She said slowly, “I could go to Glacius, School of Healing and Waterbending Arts.” 

Archie snorted. “And what good would that do? You can’t bend and have never shown an interest in healing.”  
“No,” Harry agreed, “But you have. They have healing courses available to non benders where they teach anatomy, splinting, and other things. And the fire nation is not nearly as strict regarding where non benders are educated. I am sure you could be resourceful enough to find your way into a teaching room, and perhaps find a co-conspirator.” 

“Except for all of the non bending fire nation students. Who I am sure would not report me to their parents.” the sarcasm oozed from Archie’s lips.

“Well, you’ll just have to be careful. And not bring attention to yourself.”  
“But that’s the least of our problems. Do you not think that my father might be suspicious when I don’t go to Hogwart?”  
“That’s the brilliant thing,” Harry leans in. “I’ll be you.”  
Archie’s eyes widen. “Harry. You. can’t. bend. What kind of tests do you think they will have you do? How…” He trails off. “This is the worst idea ever. And this is including the time you decided to play The Prank on the Mayor.”  
“Well he ignored the reports from dad about how the other guards were intimidating businesses. And Archie. If your dad asks, I can write to him and imply that I will not learn water bending unless it is from Glacius. That will buy us some time. In the meantime, I will learn some cool bending forms from Hogwarts, and you will learn as much healing as you can. If the worst comes to pass, we can send a coded red messenger hawk that means we are going to be revealed. Otherwise we can evaluate at the end of the school year. We can switch places and if you want to go to stuffy Hogwarts then we can switch back.”  
Archie looks at Harry in amazement. “Really, I…” Archie shakes his head. “We could really do this” he says in amazement. “Harry, let’s do it.”  
“Let’s risk it all.” Harry smirks. “I’ll be the first non bender to go to the best bending school in the world.”  
The next month found Harry sending two letters: one to the fire nation to request schooling overseas and the other to Glacius, the water bending school which asked all sorts of questions including “what do you want to learn from Glacius. And Why is it important to you? And What will you bring to Glacius? Harry sent the essay proposals to Archie. The application for Glacius was sent. As for the fire nation, it was only a matter of signing an additional six years of her life away to become a healer for the fire nation army, and Harry had permission.  
Harry began training in earnest with her father, the captain of the guards at their town Newport. At one point he was a corporal for the fire nation army and was considered in the selection of a new general. But because of circumstances involving a rebel, he was demoted to become a guard. Which meant he made perfect training for running and fighting against benders at Hogwarts.  
Harry ducked under jets of fire, lunged to the side of a fire whip, and was still singed more times than she cared to count. Faster she urged her legs faster. After a couple of these sessions, James asked, “Honey, you are studying to become a healer. Why are you desperate to learn how to fight?”  
, “I have heard that the tribesmen can be pretty misogynistic. It would be a shame if I was taken advantage of because I am a non-bender from the fire nation.”  
James went pale and nodded his head. He had heard stories from his wife about how women were prized most for their ability to procreate and to care for children. More than their ability to fight, or to defend, or to sing, or invent. “Right. Well you need to be a lot faster to defend yourself from a bender. And,” James paused. “Ask your mother for a duel and training. She got the upper hand on me a couple of times. For a non-bender she can be scary.”  
And so Harry ran twice a day starting with a half mile and increasing the distance each day, and asked her mom to train. Harry gave the same explanation; Lily frowned and agreed. Their first fight was brutal. Harry was upside down with the wind completely knocked out of her. “Do you want to continue?”  
Harry, eyes watering, nodded emphatically, “of course!”  
“Then get up.” As Harry clambered to her feet. “I wish you weren’t going to the north pole honey.”  
Harry frowned. “It’s my decision. I really want to learn to heal. And I am going to need to protect myself.”  
“I know.” Lily said. “Just...be careful. Water tribesmen do not like their masculinity challenged and are too prideful to accept defeat. The best outcome to a fight is avoiding it in the first place.” Lily paused, “ That said, some fights are unavoidable. All of your opponents will be bigger than you and more powerful in every way than you. So the only way you can win or stop the fight is to have better technique than your opponent, and faster than your opponent. And when you come across someone against who you know you cannot win, I need you to give up and get out.”  
Harry nodded. “Right, well Harry. This will not be easy. I will show you how to get inside someone’s guard, and how to apply pressure so that they give up. We will be practicing ten times, going slowly at first and then quicker each time. We will spar afterwards and I expect you to remember the hold, jabs, and breaks from the previous day. We won’t move on until you can remember each of the previous holds.” Harry nods, eyes wide. “Good, let us begin.”

Lily was right. It was brutal.  
___________________________

The months passed and Harry’s acceptance letter came. Harry saw the list of required items including a request of information: a current address, the sex of the individual, and the branch of study for healing. Archie selected non-bending, male, and put down both Hogwarts and her house number. They would need 200 acupuncture needles, a stethoscope, a small rubber mallet, a tuning fork, seventeen notebooks, 10 quills, 20 ink pots, and 13 graphite writing instruments, 10 pieces of chalk, and two lap sized chalkboards. Harry read the second page of information.  
“Archie. Only girls can learn healing. If you’re a boy, you’ll be enrolled in the fighting classes.” “Of course those sexist traditionalist...” Archie sighed and trailed off, then disgustedly grabbed the pen and jotted an “fe” in front of “male”. That’s not all the tuition was 20 golds per semester and the school requested 20 gold coins upfront, with the rest to be paid in two installments.  
Harry showed the contract to her parents. James and Lily barely flinched at the price. “Just make sure you study Harry.” Lily sighed. 

In their “training sessions” James had started throwing fire around Harry, and Harry was amazed at how fast her father could produce fire. Within a minute, Harry was completely out of breath, and the only thing she could was dodge. Unless, non benders best advantage is getting close to the bender. Harry dodged to the right, tumbled to the left, finally getting inside James’ guard. Harry swept her foot, James jumped back and threw a jet of fire where her leg was. Harry grabs his left wrist and pulls it forward and to the left as she stepped to the side and behind. She pushed his shoulder forward, and kneed the popliteal fossa, following him to the ground, making sure to keep her weight on the middle of his back and both of his hands facing inwards and hooked behind his back. 

‘Alright, I yield,” said James. “That was excellent Harry! But remember you don’t need to prove that you are stronger than jerks. Usually it is best to ignore them.”

Harry smiled and nodded. It felt good to fight. It felt good to best her father even once. “I’ll show them that I can be strong, and that they shouldn’t mess with me.” Harry smiled.

“So do you feel ready for Glacius? The ship is leaving in two days. I hope you are all packed.”  
“Almost. I am a bit nervous. I really want to make a good impression-these people will be responsible for teaching me the intricacies of the human body. And I’ve never been on such a long boat trip before. What if I get sick?” Harry feels her gut clench. What if I’m found out before I start school. What if they find out the first week?  
“We will still be a letter away. And,” dad hesitated, “Lily reached out to an old friend. There will be people there to look out for you.”  
Harry felt her gut clench. “Really?” she chokes out, “who?”  
“A woman named Yugoda, knows that Harry, Lily’s daughter has come to learn healing.”  
Harry smiled, attempting not to feel as though things were slipping out of control. “Thanks dad. I really appreciate you looking out for me.”  
_________________-

Harry and Archie spent the day before leaving packing their bags, going to each other’s house to do it. “Harry’s” trunk was packed with medical supplies, a cage for Hawkey the messenger hawk, two wigs, a kit of make up, 20 packs of fire flakes, 10 tins of biscuits, and 6 sets of both girl clothing and boy clothing. Fortunately they were the same size, so much of their closets could be shared. Archie sank into the bed. “So, that’s done. It feels good to be done.”  
“We’ve only just begun,” Harry said seriously. “My dad mentioned that mum reached out to Yugoda to keep an eye on “Harry”. Archie, there will be more things that we can not predict. Do you still want to go through with this?”  
“Absolutely! Anyway, I want to hear your plan for tomorrow.”  
“Right. Harry is leaving first on the ship tomorrow morning. It will be dusk, but you still need to keep your hood up. You’re gonna need to practice applying makeup for the next three weeks on the ship to the north pole. But the hard part comes with me pretending to be you. I need you to start to feel sick tonight, and then I will ramp it up after you leave. I’ve got two days to fill and I plan to make good use of some green tinged makeup and some really pale makeup. Then just as I am starting to feel less groggy, I can board the coach.”  
Archie smiled, “Right. Be sick tonight. Practice my face painting skills.” Archie smiled, “Come hell or high water, I am ready.”  
“We will be ready.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is a one shot. I did begin a second chapter, but am not confident enough in my writing skills to promise anything.


End file.
